judiu

WHOA! Thanks for the warning!

Are those the Martha Stewart Fricos? I've made the various types: Sharp cheddar, Parmesan/Rosemary, Gruyere, and love the Asiago that I make with half semolina and half rye flour. I don't follow her recipes exactly - I grate the cheeses till I have about two cups of each then add a heaping teaspoon or so of fresh herbs. I sprinkle on a heaping teaspoon of flour, toss and add a little more if I think it needs, it - test one or two on a medium hot griddle - not in oven - turn when the edges start to melt and as soon as the center settles and looks like it is going to melt, remove them to a tray lined with parchment. If you want perfect circles, use muffin rings. No, Andiesenji, they're strictly in my head. I adore the cheese that 'leaks' out of a grilled cheese sandwich and gets grilled itself, but I never thought about making fricos in a pan How wierd is that? I've only ever seen them made on a baking sheet with a silpat, but boy, do I love 'em!

Fricos! The best part of a grilled cheese is the cheese that gets grilled by accident; so make fricos in the oven on purpose.

All time favorite omlette filling: Jack Cheese, Avocado, Tomatoes, Bacon and a little Onion. Now i'm hungry!

Try this: remove strainer from sink drain, and put lid, knob down into the drain, and sprinkle the grease stains with baking soda. Fill lid with hottest tap water you have, and let soak. The crud should be able to be wiped off after a couple of hours. If not, try Bartender's Friend. HTH!

Try this: make a pice of toast from (pardon) crappy white bread (if you have any) butter lightly (to help carry flavors) and sprinkle on a touch of your spice mix .Eat. Evaluate the flavor(s) in the mix. Is it spicy hot? Salty? Sweet spices, like clove and cinnamon? That way, you can get a better idea how to use it, and (if it's totally revolting) you've only spent the cost of a slice of bread and a little butter.

Comestables enthusiast?

I was thinking of cutting the pears into a 'fan' shape, plating with the cheesecake, and saucing the whole works with the reduced poaching liquid from the pears.

AHA! Thanks, Andie! New grist for my 'facts mill'!

Do you keep "sour salt" in the house? It's straight citric acid crystals, and intensely sour. I believe it was used in Schav, the sorrell soup, when no other souring agent was available. I think, that when crushed, it's used to make the sour coating on the Warheads.

Nylon mesh pouf for teflon pans. Sold in most supermarkets, in the aisle with the SOS pads, and Brillo. I just rinse mushrooms, very briefly, and wipe with a towel.

They are also great for small servings of chips, pretzels, etc. Cheaper than paper towels, and better portability than a possibly breakable or lose-able bowl!

Kim, that bread and boeuf bourguignon looks amazing. As for the Asian glazed short ribs, it is super simple recipe based on this recipe from Wegmans. The corn bread and sweet potato souffle were bought from the store as this was a mid-week dinner. The ribs look wonderful, but what is this Wegman's oil thing to which they refer? Don't have Wegman's here in S. Florida... TIA!

Ok, WHY is buffalo not good for a cheeseburger? Too lean?

When I made chicken and dumplings, I am forced to admit that i use Bisquick for the dumplings and a plain old supermarket chicken. I dump about a half a teaspoon of Bell's Poultry Seasoning into the dumpling dough, and they vanish from my table most quickly! I season the chicken poaching liquid with onion, garlic, the aforementioned poultry seasoning, and a scrap more thyme (of which I'm very fond)Kosher salt and fresh ground white pepper.Now, I'm hungry all over again!

The nose knows...

Pierogi, how do you eat with my mouth? We seem to share the same tastes; Hellman's is my secret weapon in a lot of things... SoFLA doesn't do cold very well, but the 2 weeks before this have been damn near bitter! On my own part, my guilty pleasures run to Arby's Beef & Cheddar sandwiches and their Jamoca shakes. Wow, now I'm hungry for that for lunch...

Sulten, congrats on getting great reservations! Please PLEASE do not forget to cancel the one that you won't be using, so as not to deprive the restaurant of a table that they could turn. Thanks

Shalmanese beat me to the punch. You shouldn't use "sweet" onions if you are going to cook them, because they not only have less sugar but less flavor overall. "Sweet" onions should only be used if they will be consumed raw. Otherwise they're not so special. AHA! Another bothersome question answered! Never could figure out why my pot roast was "flat" when I used vidalia onions as the basis for the onion goop (technical term, that) that flavors the gravy and meat so well!

I had a (somewhat, sortof) similar situation, many years ago. A friend, who was NOT an adventerous cook, brought to my home several pounds of fresh shrimp, a pound of butter(just plain old), and a pound of pasta, and said "Make us something wonderful." I proceeded to serve up spaghetti al' scampi et burro con aglio y olio. Pardon my fractured Italian, spaghetti with shrimp with butter and garlic and oil. (My mom had lately turned me on to the garlic and oil thing, with added pasta water and a ton of parsley) with garlic bread. She was happy, and I've never reprodused the recipe, but dayum, it was good!

Has anyone ever tried the "French Fry" blade of a mandoline for dicing onions? Since the onions are "pre-sliced" (by the separation of the rings) if cross cut with a french fry slice, it seems to me that it would fall into a reasonable simulation of a dice. no?

Oddly enough, my favorite perfume smells A LOT like Angustora bitters!

Peter, a whiffle is the mereset dusting, like the first tiny flurry of snow that blows around on the street; really, in the case of the spice, not enough to notice in the finished product, but still lending a subtle background note. I think my mom invented the usage, but I understood it perfectly!

Per my (late) Mom, a "whiffle" of cinnamon in my carrot and raisin salad.

Tropical Passion?